The Bartender
by sammycircle
Summary: They were both the elder sibling. They were both orphans. They both had tattoos for a special reason. However, one was a pirate, whereas the other was a pirate-hater. AceXNojiko
1. Chapter 1

**The Bartender**

_They were both the elder sibling. They were both orphans. They both had tattoos for a special reason. However, one was a pirate, whereas the other was a pirate-hater._

Scanning the horizon with a squinted eye, he adjusted the ridiculously orange cowboy hat on top of his head with a faint smile. Land was just _right ahead_. Travelling in the sea had its perks, but then again it was nice to actually feel your feet back on solid ground, rather than inhaling sea-salt every other day.

Once he docked, Ace leapt off the tiny boat that carried him, slightly puzzled to find a relatively deserted town in front of him.

"_There should be bar somewhere…"_ He thought to himself, just when he spotted swinging doors leading to it. The doors were pushed open as he took in his surroundings – neat, empty and quiet. Perfect.

The bartender was a young lady with striking blue hair, tattoos adorning her arms and collarbone. Raising an eyebrow at a rare visitor, she wiped an already clean glass before candidly asking for his order.

Propping his head up with an elbow, he was seated in front of her and with a polite nod, he said, "A beer, thanks."

She gave him a cryptic smile, pouring his drink without further comment. Ace didn't take it to heart – he wasn't a rich bastard after all. The barmaid was still staring at him with a rather peculiar expression, well it couldn't be helped since he was the _only _customer in the bar at that moment.

"I haven't seen you before." Her eyes pierced through him, as though he had an aura of suspicion around him. Ace decided that she really needed to be more welcoming if she had as little business as this. Downing his beer, Ace flashed her a grin.

"I just landed."

"Landed?" She asked sharply, freezing in her position.

"Who are you?"

Ace wasn't perturbed by her unusual behaviour; people seemed to find it hard to trust him sometimes.

"Ace. And I'm a pirate, if that's what you wanted to know." The instant he let out the word 'pirate', she violently responded by dropping one of the glasses, shattering it into tiny pieces. To Ace, it could have been better if he weren't so blatantly blunt – he forgot that pirates were classified criminals.

Regarding her carefully, he began picking up some of the glass pieces. "… I'm guessing you're not fond of pirates?"

Nojiko seriously considered kicking him out for the sake of her sister's plight, but paused in mid-step. No, perhaps after he paid for that drink…

Nami wasn't back yet, and her sister was a tad worried. Her eyes had trailed along Ace's tattoo beneath his shirt, wondering about the meaning behind those letters. Tattoos weren't for the fun of it, it was a mark you carried, a permanent etch on your skin, it had to hold some kind of significance. That didn't matter now, however, he was a pirate and that's that.

"_Nojiko! What's that?" Nami pointed at the tattoos adorning her sister's arm with a kind of half-curious look._

"_Oh it's nothing, just some decoration that's all." Nojiko had responded in all calmness. _

_Nami hates pirates_. She had told herself firmly, standing for her little sister. However, all thoughts were interrupted by the sound of clashing and the swinging doors being literally kicked out of its hinges.

"There we go again." She said dryly, completely forgetting about Ace's presence.

What stood out from the entire crowd of fishmen was a young woman with bright orange hair, almost but not quite similar to the barmaid in appearance. Her face was sullen, apathetic, as though she did not give the slightest care of their apparent celebration. Upon seeing Nojiko, there was a hint of a faint smile before going back to her nonchalant state.

Ace minded his own business, swirling the leftover liquid remaining in his mug. Judging by the commotion, he assumed they were the pirates the barmaid had despised to such an extent.

One of Arlong's crew noticed Ace's silent figure, nudged him with a drunkard laugh. Annoyed, Ace pointedly ignored him.

"Ya haven't seen you before, paid your monthly fee yet?" The fishman drawled, holding onto the counter in unsteadiness. Nojiko stiffened, until she pretended nothing happened.

"What's your name?" Another piped out.

It couldn't hurt to say his name now. "Ace."

"Nami! Is he a friend of yours?"

Without glancing at his direction, the woman by the name of 'Nami' said in a monotone voice, "No."

"Ah, no humans are suited for our navigator huh?" The obvious captain of the crew spoke, roaring with laughter, in which Nami gave nothing more than a small grimace.

Forcing a bitter smile, Nami replied, "I have high expectations."

Arlong nodded in agreement, "As expected from Nami! More beer!"

Slumped on the counter, a mocking crew member poked Ace's sleeping figure – apparently his narcoleptic tendencies had worked up again. Thinking he was either dead, ignoring them, or dead asleep, he kicked Ace off the chair where he landed with a great thud. Hurriedly, Nojiko dragged him behind the counter where he'd begun to gain consciousness…

"Shut up." She warned him beforehand, when he attempted to question his current position.

Letting out a malicious laugh, Arlong stood up. "Nami, don't you _ever _forget our promise, eh?"

"I keep to my word." Nami said with little emotion, pushing past everyone, out of the bar.

"She hates any form of pity." Nojiko said quietly.

"Ya two sisters?"

"Not biologically, but yes."

"Siblings don't have to be connected by blood." He reasoned. They settled into silence after that. Out of the corner of his eye he spotted a lone sandwich resting on her hand, half-raised.

"She didn't eat." Nojiko only said knowingly.

Tipping his hat, Ace stretched, cracking his back. "Thanks for the food."

"Hmm."

"You wanna be a pirate?" He asked, with a hint of cheekiness.

"No thanks, _captain_." Her answer was just as dry as the rest.

There was an unusual glint in his eye. "I'm sure we'll meet again."

"I highly doubt that."

"Are you a fortune teller?"

"…No…?"

"Then don't go deciding your fate." With a boyish grin, he vanished just as quickly as he appeared.

And _that _was how a certain freckled man left a lasting impression on the blue-haired bartender.

* * *

**It's a pairing I never thought I'd write, it was somewhat of a challenge but I'd really appreciate your feedback! :) Nojiko IS pretty cool by the way~**


	2. Chapter 2

**The Bartender**

From the previous chapter...

"_Are you a fortune teller?"_

"…_No…?"_

"_Then don't go deciding your fate." With a boyish grin, he vanished just as quickly as he appeared. _

_And that was how a certain freckled man left a lasting impression on the blue-haired bartender._

* * *

The ship couldn't be described merely as large, or even huge. It was humongous, the sheer size and dominance was rather fitting for such a crew – the Whitebeard Pirates. Still, every once in a while a stop had to be made and for some reason, they have gone all the way round the grand line back to one of the four seas. And this sea in particular, the weakest, was East Blue.

"There's an island straight ahead…" A freckled man pointed in a vague direction, with his blonde mate giving him a questioning look.

"How do you know?"

Shrugging, he said unhelpfully, "Intuition."

"We need supplies anyway, at the rate he's eating." Another crew mate joked, donned in a chef's attire and a large spatula.

Hopping off after docking, the freckled man called by his men as 'Ace' walked on the somewhat familiar soil.

"Is there a bar here… somewhere?" The blonde man, who was getting quite tired of his companion's misleading comments today, strode past him with his hands deep in his pockets.

"Well, we can find out."

At another end of the same tiny island, a ruckus was arising. Unsurprisingly, it had something to do with the docked pirate ship, which did garner a great deal of attention.

"EVERYONE! PIRATES ARE HERE!"

The chief of the village nodded solemnly, pacing around the gathering of villagers looking on with deep concern.

"Gen-san… Luffy and the others…" A lean woman by the name of Nojiko placed a placating hand on the chief, though worry was still etched on her pale face.

"One in a million." Genzo answered seriously, poking around with his walking stick, remaining unconvinced.

"Nami's a pirate too." Nojiko added with a chuckle.

"This is no laughing matter Nojiko!" Genzo snapped, which only fuelled the ironic humour at the situation. Nojiko simply lead Genzo outside to meet their 'guests'.

"We'll see." She said calmly.

Whitebeard said boomingly, "We're not here to pillage or invade", his voice resounding throughout the whole village. His intimidating presence didn't help ease the tension, as the villagers began whispering incoherently to themselves.

"Hey I know you!" Ace pointed directly at Nojiko. Genzo scowled.

"Sure." Nojiko replied sceptically, with no hint of recognition on her part.

"Arlong… Your sister?" His brow wrinkled as he tried to recapture the distant memory.

"How does _he _know?" An old woman gasped disbelievingly.

"Some pirate came and saved us. Funny huh?"

"Pirate…?" Ace's face held a full-blown grin.

Smirking, Nojiko continued, "Yes, someone by the name of Luffy with a straw hat." Ace looked up, startled.

"Luffy?!"

Nojiko arched an eyebrow. "You know him?"

"He's… my brother…"

"WHAT?!"

It took quite a while for all of them to settle down, as most of the pirates either remained on the ship or made themselves at home in the bar.

"What is your name?" Ace propped himself up, not taking his eyes off the tattoo on the young woman's shoulder.

"Nojiko."

"She's pretty!" A random shout from the crown drew the attention of others, who agreed heartily, especially a particular brown-haired chef… Ace ducked his head with no comment, while Nojiko gave a bored expression at the audience.

Genzo, who had then been pretty much invisible most of the time, snapped his walking stick in half out of pure frustration.

"I WILL kill you."

"Woah old man, relax your tendons." Marco halted Genzo from flinging his stick at any drunk victims.

"I'M NOT AN OLD MAN!"

Nojiko took the time to observe Ace and his crew, wondering how a previously gawky guy she met two years ago could possibly be the same person. She voiced out her opinions, albeit bluntly.

"You look different."

"I'm stronger now!" Ace flexed his biceps proudly, adding to the fact that he no longer wore a shirt.

"You wanna be a pirate?" He asked after a pause.

"You asked that the last time!"

"Oh, I did?" He tilted his head innocently. "So?"

"No." She denied flatly yet again.

"You're really pretty." He complimented, as she kicked him in the shin.

"Better not let Gen-san hear that." She countered, rather confused with herself as well.

Standing up, he leaned in to Nojiko's ear. "Let's just say I wasn't kidding."

As he walked out of the door for a breather, he looked back with a boyish grin. "I'm not drunk either!"

Nojiko held an empty tray in her hands, desperately praying that Genzo heard nothing of what he said – or if that suspicious blonde man at the side wouldn't spread anything.

Like hell she could trust pirates.

* * *

**YES YES YES! Finally updated this:D Although my next update would probably be Ace or Luffy's Monologue, but I'm enjoying writing this so far... what do you think?:) **

**Review~~~**


	3. Chapter 3

From the previous chapter...

_Standing up, he leaned in to Nojiko's ear. "Let's just say I wasn't kidding."_

_As he walked out of the door for a breather, he looked back with a boyish grin. "I'm not drunk either!"_

_Nojiko held an empty tray in her hands, desperately praying that Genzo heard nothing of what he said – or if that suspicious blonde man at the side wouldn't spread anything._

_Like hell she could trust pirates._

* * *

She had heard many stories about the sea from Bellemere, fantastical adventures and close shaves, but having someone lawless and totally free-spirited to tell the tales seemed totally different. As Nojiko told the entire story of Luffy's eventful incident with Arlong, Ace puffed out proudly.

"That's my little brother!" He exclaimed, while Nojiko resisted the urge to roll her eyes at his 'big brother' tendencies.

It was odd – Ace wasn't even hard to like. His narcoleptic habits were a pain in the arse, that's for sure, but his candid humour made up for all the jokes Genzo repeated over the years. (They were getting pretty old)

"Where are you going?" Ace called out, watching Nojiko close up the bar and tidying up the tables.

"Home." She paused momentarily, as if contemplating something. "Wanna come?"

"Don't tell Gen-san." Nojiko said in a hushed voice, as Ace wondered why a young woman like her would still be as cautious as a teenager bringing a boy home.

"He's a _tad _overprotective." She muttered, as though reading his mind.

The mikan garden was very breathtaking; Ace plucked a mikan from the tree before being slapped by Nojiko.

"Ask before taking!" She scolded. Then realising his puzzled expression, she sighed. "Pirates… I forgot…"

"I'm famous for dine and dash." Ace peeled the mikan, popping one into his mouth.

Covering her ears, she said quickly, "I don't want to know." Nojiko gestured towards the garden, telling Ace that she'd decided to open a mikan store with Chabo in the near future. She didn't know why she told him that – or why he seemed less than happy about her decision.

"So that's how you want to live your life? Sell mikans?"

"What's so bad about that?" Nojiko asked, rather miffed at his absurd tone.

"You're more interesting than that."

Nojiko's entire life was surrounded by mikans, and they meant a great deal to her so why did his words seem so stinging? It wasn't like she had any map-drawing talent like Nami, nor had she any desire to sail the world. Ace made it seem that she was acting like a retired old lady – instead of cats for company she had mikans.

"I'll live my life the way I want to." She answered, a bit more fiercely than she intended to.

"As you wish, ma'm." He offered the last piece of mikan to her, giving a lopsided smile. "Do you want to visit the ship?"

Walking behind him silently, Nojiko observed the ship ahead, musing, "Don't you think some of your crew have too much alcohol in their blood?"

"And you're a bartender." He pointed out.

"That doesn't automatically put me in a position of a drunkard."

She took a deep breath, prattling on, "Drinking too much alcohol initially causes fat deposits to develop in the liver and with excessive drinking the liver may become inflamed resulting in alcoholic hepatitis which can result in liver failure and death, or permanently scar and damage the liver resulting in liver cirrhosis… may also result in hypertension, also known as high blood pressure which I highly suspect your captain has, rises the risk of a heart attack." Nojiko didn't notice her blurting of unconventional terms until Ace gawked at her.

"What?"

A mischievous smile crossed his features. "Do bartenders have to know that much?"

"..."

"Speaking of which, I saw your reference books." She blinked, knowing that he was definitely going to use this as blackmail material.

"Are all pirates that persistent?"

"Only when they're as pretty."

Puffing out a sigh, Nojiko waved off the subtle hint with a deadpan comment. "I'm totally flattered."

"I don't like pirates. They're foolhardy, unpredictable and reckless." Ace had a mysterious glint in his eyes, spinning around so suddenly that she almost rammed headfirst instead him. Nojiko didn't stray away from his stare, instead waiting for his (wittier) response.

"I don't like bartenders. They're sceptical, sarcastic and boring."

Nojiko was somewhat impressed, nodding in approval. "I like pirates with a sense of humour though."

He took one bolder step forward. "And I like bartenders who speak their mind." By then, they were so close Nojiko could feel his warm breathing at her cheek and Ace could clearly see the strand of hair hanging loosely, out of place. Growing up with Luffy, he'd never have any romantic issues. (Makino does _not _count.)

Nojiko pondered over bashing Ace's head against the wall or thinking of ways to get back at his out-of-the-blue inference with her personal space. She decided on the latter, since by her reluctant suspicions, Ace probably got a whole lot stronger than she could manage.

To get her comeback working, she had to play along.

"Hello handsome." Her attempt to bat eyelashes (which she would eternally regret) caused Ace to shrug awkwardly, much to her content.

"I never really realised how honestly good-looking you are."

Ace's mouth hung open, before he caught Nojiko smirking slightly. He whistled, pretending he was oblivious to the situation. "Really?"

"The moment I saw you I was just like… wow." Ace nodded sympathetically at her statement, as though it were a norm for girls to fall head over heels for him all the time.

"So is it alright if I kiss you?" He tilted his head to the side – _that cocky bastard. _

When lips meet, one would expect there to be sparks of excitement and celebratory fireworks this was somehow different.

It definitely had something to do with Genzo.

"_WHAT THE BLOODY HELL ARE YOU TWO DOING?!_"

Nojiko sighed, though Ace didn't know it was because the kiss ended or because she'd have to face the torrent of lecture by her overprotective uncle… he doubt they were related.

"I was testing the temperature of his mouth to see if he contracted a fever." Nojiko smiled at Genzo sweetly.

Ace was going to interrupt that since he was technically made of fire, his temperature would always be that of a fever it didn't matter whether he wore upper clothing or not but Nojiko didn't need to know that – not until she joined anyway.

When Genzo huffed off, Nojiko faced Ace, her expression unreadable.

"_Go to hell, pirate._"

* * *

**I'M BACK! :D Decided to thank my reviewers so far:**

xXxWolvesInTheNightxXx/ Stelra Etnae/ 4fireking/ PortgasDLisanna/ animefan/ TheLastNumberOfPi/ flyingpetals/ twelvex

**A lot you guys have been telling you've been shipping this unconventional pairing and I'm really happy :) There might be others as we go along (hint hint) but we'll see:) **

**Review~~~ LOVE YOU ALL**


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